Is the viral capsid made from a single protein strung togeth

Is the viral capsid made from a single protein strung together or an assembly of smaller proteins? One can get a better handle of this question by rephrasing, “If the
capsid is made from a single protein, how much DNA would this require and could this amount of DNA fit into a typical capsid volume?”

(a)Assuming a viral capsid of radius 20 nm, estimate the volume of DNA needed to encode this protein.

(b) Can this amount fit inside the capsid? Hint:First, estimate the amount of protein needed inorder to cover the surface area of the capsid (radius equals 2 nm). Next, find the number of amino acids and thus base pairs needed to encode this protein.Finally, use the volume of a base pair ~1nm^3 to find the total volume of the DNA molecule

Solution

Viral capsid is a protein shell. It is made up of with a several oligomeric structural subunits made of proteins called as protoceratops.

The interplay between the virus size and the genome length can be known through the packing ratio which is the percent fraction of capsid volume taken by viral DNA.